Think Out Loud with Rachel Mepham

This episode of Think Out Loud introduces Rachel Mepham! Yes, an interview by myself, with myself.   

Discover Why do I do what I do?, the background of Digital Clarity and why businesses struggle with marketing.

Not to mention the future of marketing with AI and ChatGPT on the scene.   

From cider drinking to custom vehicles, the best films of all time, through to artificial intelligence reading our minds!   

Referenced links:

Digital Clarity  

Counts Kustoms - Counting Cars   

ChatGPT   

Dodge Ram image credit @ky_mega_ram

This episode of Think Out Loud explores the value of asking why and how we can delve deeper into problems to help us identify new ways of looking at things, and fresh ideas.

Some of the simplest questions with the most complicated answers are often answered with…

This shuts down the conversation, creativity and progress.

Think about the workplace, if we don't ask questions, we may be very obedient and classed as a “good employee” but we may never progress further.

Recently listened to an audio book -  Warren Berger's – A more beautiful question.

He talks about how many designers, inventors and engineers come up with ideas and solve problems. Common denominator - exceptional questioners.

Using the 5 why's I demonstrate an example of how questioning can make you look at a problem in a different way, and  in turn come up with a new approach.

How can you be the best you can be? 

I am not talking about comparing yourself to others, not trying to the best at this, or the best at that, but how can you truly be the best version of yourself? 

Can we really expect ourselves to excel when we are not looking after our basic needs? 

I take a look at Maslow's Hierarchy of needs and adapt this to my own version. Looking at the changing needs of daily lives in 2022/2023. The need for self-value, socialisation and encouragement. The focus on proactivity and drive to help you get yourself to where you want to be in a business, family or individual environment. 

Let me know your thoughts, input, any changes you would make for your own hierarchy of needs. 

After a short break over winter, I am back with some thoughts, ideas and some great interviews with an array of wonderful people. Talking about innovation and technology within marketing, AI, virtual reality, hybrid working and the software to support it, marketing for events and keeping ahead of the curve. 

There is lots to explore and discuss. I look forward to speaking to you soon and exploring thoughts, ideas and things we all think but possibly don't say out loud! 

Sorry about the rant about how terrible internet service providers are! 😆

Join my and my guests for series 2 of think out loud! 

Today’s special guest is an energetic, motivated, fitness guru, proving to women that you can have your cake and eat it.

Based in Nashville Tennessee in the US, she has a doctorate in physical therapy, and certifications in personal training and nutrition.

She helps people achieve a healthy balance of life, fitness, eating and enjoyment.

Founder and personal coach at HLB Lifestyle, Hannah Brandt! Welcome”

Get to know Hannah:

Let’s get down to business:

Starting with an easy question – What is HLB Lifestyle and what is it you do for people?

Our business process is very similar.

You say you take a “detailed look at where a client has been, where they are now, and where they want to be”

It fascinates me because although we work in completely separate industries, the similarities are so aligned.

3 questions in one: How do you make sure that the goals a client wants to achieve are realistic? Can anyone achieve what they set out to do, or do you need to have a particular mindset? Are there people you can't help?

Can you give the listeners your top tips to motivating yourself to eat well and keep fit when many of us are either still working from home, Or on the other end of the scale – working every hour under the sun that we feel we don’t have time to exercise or prepare healthy food!

Episodes you might like: 

How to make your brain more productive: https://anchor.fm/rachel-mepham/episodes/How-to-make-your-brain-more-productive-e15dhob

Special Guest - Sara Giddens, Kahua Inc : https://anchor.fm/rachel-mepham/episodes/Special-Guest-Sara-Giddens---Director-of-Industry-Marketing-at-Kahua-e14i3ec

It has been a long day and my brain is frazzled because I have so much I am thinking about.

Why is it people don't talk about how thinking is so tiring? Especially MD's, C-suite, directors, heads of departments, they never talk about brain exhaustion. They never talk about how they feel drained from thinking and making decisions all day. 

Sometimes does it feel like you have made no progress, no tasks are crossed off the list, you have spent all day on calls and video conferences, speaking to people, making decisions, answering questions, guiding, leading, discussing! 

Making leadership decisions day in day out, hiring, firing, marketing, sales, business direction, investment, roles and responsibilities the list never ends...

No wonder you are thinking so much, no wonder your brain hurts, no wonder you can't sleep. 

Thinking too much is exhausting, so don't beat yourself up, its normal. Also make time for a brain break! 

If you are interested in some ideas to make your brain more productive listen to Episode 15 - How to make your brain more productive.

People often think it is an easy task to fix the SEO of a website. However there are so many complexities from such a simple question. 

So here are some tips if you are asked the question "How to fix your SEO"!

Firstly - make sure you know what data you are working with. When you say fix - what does that mean? What has changed, what has dropped off, what has decreased or stopped working? 

Is your tracking even set up and counting correctly. What analytics are you using? Google Analytics, web logs, HubSpot analytics, user experience tracking. There are so many ways to track visits to your website, first make sure you know what you are tracking and that the numbers are accurate. 

Then understand good vs bad traffic - who are you trying to engage with, what location are they, what device, what are they searching for - and what search queries are they using to search? 

Once you can understand what the problem may be and where it is occurring, look at timings. Segment the data to try to understand what dropped off and when. Really try to pin point when things changed and from where. 

From here it is likely you need to utilise an SEO specific tool, Search Console, SEMRush, Moz, Majestic, Ahrefs, or any other platform which will help you dive into the potential technical errors with the site, ranking performance and the back link profile. 

There are so many areas to probe into - it is now important to make a plan and test what changes you make, benchmark them and learn what is having an impact. 

Good Luck, and for more reading up on ways to improve or fix your SEO, visit our Digital Clarity blog

I have taken some interesting top brain facts from an article on the dentinstitute.com website.

I love interesting information about the brain, how it works, how we can improve it's functionality and productivity, how we store information etc.. I found an interesting article from the Dent Institute posted in 2019 - 22 facts about the brain and have borrowed just a few to help us think about how we can be more productive, less tired and power actual lightbulbs - not just idea light bulbs with our brain!

Working in a busy, stressful environment like digital marketing, these interesting tips and insights may help your brain function at it's best! 

Lets explore a few of those brain facts together: 

If you have enjoyed listening to today's podcast please subscribe for more content where that came from on Think Out Loud.

This week's special guest is joining us from across the pond!

Taking the art of marketing construction software to another level.

From strategic planning through to analysis and ROI reporting, she has “built” on her career within the B2B software space.

Director of Industry Marketing at Kahua - Sara Giddens.

We discuss the evolution of women in the construction industry, why the agile construction software is so important in times of change and the future of digital transformation. 

How many times have you said...'I'll do it tomorrow'? 

I certainly have. But why? Whether that be going to the gym, making a call, arranging a meeting, even doing the housework! 

In our busy lives there are a number of reasons we might put things off till another day. Let's explore some of the top reasons together why we put off tasks until tomorrow.